The Serial Con Artist Who Became A Murderer

[00:00:00]It's early morning on April 15th, 2003.

[00:00:04]In the beachfront town of Ocean City, Maryland.

[00:00:08]As the sun shines over the icy waters of the Atlantic, a police officer responds to an abandoned vehicle with the engine still running.

[00:00:20]On the seat, he finds a chilling note signed by a woman named Cindy McKay.

[00:00:27]>> She says she's going to take her own life, that she's she's rafted out into the Atlantic Ocean to kill herself.

[00:00:33]>> Who is Cindy, and what exactly pushed her over the edge?

[00:00:39]Cindy McKay is born in 1956 and raised in the shadow of our nation's capital, in an upscale community in Prince George's County, Maryland.

[00:00:51]>> Her father was a utility company foreman, and her mother worked on Capitol Hill >> [music] >> as an aid to a congressperson.

[00:00:59]>> Cindy grew up >> in a really loving household. She felt very safe around her family. [music] >> The grass gets greener for Cindy when she hits her teens.

[00:01:09]>> She went to a private [music] Catholic school, and she was a cheerleader.

[00:01:14]She was well-liked, she was popular.

[00:01:17]>> But Cindy a bit of a rebel.

[00:01:20]>> She also had a sort of a mischievous streak.

[00:01:24]Uh she would cut class, you know, she was she was a prankster.

[00:01:27]>> [music] >> There are many kids who cut class and in the end grow up to be great, stable, secure [music] adults.

[00:01:33]>> She's anything but stable.

[00:01:37]>> Cindy is a classic psychopath. [music] Psychopaths tend to have lower brain activity, so they don't get stimulated very often, [music] and so they need to push the envelope so much more to feel the types of highs that a normal person would feel from eating chocolate.

[00:01:53]>> An expert at blending in, Cindy graduates high school and marries a police officer named Steven Morris in 1974.

[00:02:03]The couple have [music] two children.

[00:02:07]But after a few years, Cindy grows bored and begins pushing the envelope.

[00:02:13]>> She worked the front desk at a hospital in Southern Maryland.

[00:02:17]She had an affair >> She really feels no remorse or she doesn't see consequences to her behaviors.

[00:02:24]>> By the early '80s, Cindy's [music] divorce is finalized and her ex takes full custody of her two oldest children.

[00:02:32]Single at 27, [music] Cindy Mackay is on her own for the first time and craves the good life.

[00:02:40]>> She thought, "How can I make a quick buck?"

[00:02:43]>> While working as a bookkeeper, Cindy overcharges clients and deposits the money into a secret [music] bank account.

[00:02:52]Money becomes her drug and [music] Cindy can't get enough of it.

[00:02:58]>> Cindy needs to embezzle more and more money so [music] that she can feel the high from the very first time. You know, so she keeps upping the ante because she doesn't get that same high anymore when she does the same exact [music] thing.

[00:03:09]>> But a few months later, Cindy's boss discovers a lot of money has gone missing.

[00:03:15]>> Gone.

[00:03:16]I'm going to need you to go through the records again. I don't understand where the money went. I'm going to need you to audit now.

[00:03:22]>> And it only gets worse from there.

[00:03:26]Late one night in 1985, after everyone has gone home, the office building mysteriously goes up in flames.

[00:03:37]>> The fire went [music] quickly. All the papers burned up.

[00:03:41]All of it was absolutely burned to a crisp. Hardly anything left. Witnesses apparently saw a woman running from the building.

[00:03:51]>> When the dust settles, the stolen money is traced back to a bank account [music] in Cindy's name.

[00:03:59]Police suspect her of arson, but without any evidence, the charges are dropped.

[00:04:06]Cindy is sentenced to 6 months [music] in prison for the theft.

[00:04:11]Bad girl Cindy McKay gets her kicks from committing crimes.

[00:04:16]>> It's It's insatiable greed uh with you know, an apparent lack of regard for consequences. And you could see the crimes escalating [music] each time.

[00:04:28]>> [screaming] >> Cindy was addicted to the thrill.

[00:04:32]Pushing the envelope of what's next and getting to the next goal, getting to the next level as a criminal.

[00:04:37]>> After serving [music] a 6-month sentence for theft, Cindy is released. And she meets and marries husband number two, Robert Reynolds.

[00:04:47]>> [music] >> Cindy and Robert have two children of their own, William and Patrick. [music] And they buy a home outside of Baltimore.

[00:04:57]Cindy settles in again as a wife [music] and mother and goes the extra mile to spoil her family >> [music] >> and herself.

[00:05:06]>> She's a serial shopper to you know, a 10th degree.

[00:05:11]And she was constantly spending money.

[00:05:14]It was an addiction, absolutely.

[00:05:18]>> But Cindy spends too much and doesn't have the money to pay the bills.

[00:05:23]Luckily, she knows plenty of ways to skim off the top.

[00:05:28]While working at a stationery store, Cindy sticks her hand in the pot, forging checks and pocketing cash.

[00:05:36]>> She's a classic narcissist, so she didn't think she was going to get caught.

[00:05:40]>> But she does.

[00:05:44]On September 11th, 1990, Cindy McKay is charged with 37 felony counts of theft, forgery, and falsifying documents.

[00:05:55]Faced with jail time while awaiting her trial, Cindy needs bail money fast.

[00:06:02]So, she focuses her attention on a victim much closer to home.

[00:06:08]Dear old dad.

[00:06:11]>> She faked her father's death. She got a death certificate to collect on his life insurance policy.

[00:06:18]She just absolutely turned on everybody.

[00:06:20]She was all about herself.

[00:06:23]>> Cindy transfers the deed to her dad's vacation cottage into her own name and cashes out $20,000 in equity for bail money.

[00:06:34]But, she doesn't pay her father's mortgage.

[00:06:38]And her scam doesn't keep her out of jail for long.

[00:06:43]She is sentenced to 10 years in prison and divorces [music] her second husband.

[00:06:49]When her father's loan goes into default, the bank is alerted to her other little scheme.

[00:06:57]>> They They tried to foreclose on the father's home, and he had to demonstrate [music] that he was still alive.

[00:07:02]>> I don't know how many times I got to tell you. I did not hand over the deed TO MY HOUSE. I'M NOT DEAD.

[00:07:07]>> UH which I'm sure came as a a great shock that uh on paper [music] he was not.

[00:07:14]>> Sadly, her father passes away in 1995 [music] knowing his daughter betrayed him.

[00:07:23]The bank sues [music] Cindy for the stolen funds, but the case is eventually dismissed.

[00:07:31]Cindy McKay has swindled and stolen from many, including her own father, all to satisfy her own appetites.

[00:07:43]>> It was almost like she was playing a little game with herself. She was always trying to top the heinous things that she did, you know, with another heinous thing.

[00:07:51]>> In 1999, after she is released from prison for the second time, she sets her sights on her next victim, Clarence Downs.

[00:08:02]>> He had a good pension, he had saved a little money, he owned a house, >> [music] >> and you know, there's something to be taken advantage of there.

[00:08:11]>> Naturally, Cindy charms Clarence.

[00:08:15]>> And I suppose he figured she deserved a second chance. She had a great personality. [music] For him, it was a wonderful thing.

[00:08:24]He was crazy about her.

[00:08:27]>> Cindy and Clarence marry and move into a beautiful home outside of Baltimore.

[00:08:34]Together, they open a cafe in the neighborhood.

[00:08:38]>> Cindy and Clarence did give you the impression like they were the Brady Bunch.

[00:08:42]Clean, wholesome, the type of people you want to move in your community.

[00:08:47]>> It seems that she has turned over a new leaf.

[00:08:51]That is until Cindy gets an office job at a seminary for a little extra pocket money.

[00:08:58]>> Cindy had access to sort of money to the money that was coming in, checks that were coming in that were intended for the seminary.

[00:09:05]>> Cindy funnels nearly $200,000 in donations into a secret account in her name.

[00:09:11]>> Thank you.

[00:09:12]>> But in 2002, Cindy's picture-perfect con starts to crumble.

[00:09:19]The seminary lays off Cindy pending an investigation [music] into their missing revenue.

[00:09:26]And then Clarence has a change of heart about his wife.

[00:09:29]>> Clarence Downs is having health problems. They're having financial problems.

[00:09:34]He starts telling people that he's going to leave her at the turn of the year.

[00:09:37]It's not working out with Cindy.

[00:09:39]I'm going to need a lawyer.

[00:09:42]Can't take it anymore. Now, I really I need to find one.

[00:09:46]>> But Clarence will never get the chance.

[00:09:50]On Christmas, Cindy calls his family with some terrible news.

[00:09:55]>> She's frantic. Um she says the house is on fire.

[00:09:59]Uh Clarence is inside. It was It was like flames were shooting up in the sky.

[00:10:04]>> And you you knew somebody was in trouble.

[00:10:07]>> Firefighters [music] run into the home and discover Clarence's charred body >> [music] >> on the living room sofa.

[00:10:15]>> We ran out this side door. When we opened that to the outside, more flames just came. I was calling for Buddy.

[00:10:22]And uh cuz I thought even if he couldn't see me, he could hear my voice to find his way out.

[00:10:27]>> She said that she gave him >> [music] >> a cigarette and an aluminum foil ashtray and that he had dropped the >> [music] >> uh cigarette setting the house on fire.

[00:10:43]>> The house was gutted, blackened.

[00:10:46]The fire department couldn't find a cause because everything was just destroyed.

[00:10:54]There was no evidence.

[00:10:56]>> Though Clarence's family is suspicious of Cindy, both his death and the fire are ruled accidental.

[00:11:05]Cindy is about to hit the jackpot as the beneficiary of a $300,000 life insurance policy from Clarence's death.

[00:11:17]But she plays the role of grieving widow and claims she lost everything in the fire.

[00:11:24]>> My husband's gone. This is gone. This everything we know, our history is gone.

[00:11:29]It's gone.

[00:11:31]>> The community empathizes with Cindy and her neighbor, Moses Rodriguez, manages a charity fund on her behalf.

[00:11:39]>> And when she needed money, she would give me a call. I would meet her at the bank and I would write her a check. And I was giving her, you know, a couple hundred dollars at a time.

[00:11:47]>> One morning in the spring of 2003, Cindy calls on Moses to make a large withdrawal.

[00:11:53]>> She says, "I need some money, you know, can we meet at the bank?" And she goes, "I want $8,000." And I said, "$8,000?" I said, "Cindy, that's a lot of money."

[00:12:03]>> But there's a reason Cindy needs the cash.

[00:12:06]>> So much >> She is wanted by police for the seminary [music] scam and needs to get out of town immediately.

[00:12:15]Police [music] have Cindy cornered and she is advised by an attorney to turn herself in.

[00:12:21]>> At this point, the walls are kind of closing in on Cindy once again. She knows that she's probably facing another [music] prison term and a long one at that. She can't bear the thought of going back to prison.

[00:12:34]>> And on the morning of April 15th, 2003, Cindy takes drastic measures.

[00:12:43]>> There's a note in the car that says she's going to take her own life rather than go back to prison.

[00:12:49]>> But when they dig into her past, police quickly realize they're the victims in Cindy's latest con.

[00:12:57]>> It was a means of escape to give her, even if they caught up with her, a little time. So it gave her just enough time to get ahead of this game.

[00:13:06]>> Cindy McKay is a woman on the run.

[00:13:09]But even with the police on her tail, she still has to satisfy her evil urges.

[00:13:17]Cindy makes it to Delaware and quickly finds her next victim.

[00:13:22]>> She changes her name to Annie up there.

[00:13:25]She befriends an older lives with the lady.

[00:13:30]>> Why don't you let me help you pay your bills? If you sign right here, I can go ahead and fill out the rest.

[00:13:34]>> [music] >> Starts stealing from her almost immediately.

[00:13:37]>> Cindy swindles the woman out of more than $80,000.

[00:13:43]Then lays low in Virginia.

[00:13:45]Detectives get their big break within a couple of months from Cindy's ex-husband.

[00:13:52]>> He's like, "Well, she's in a battered woman shelter down in Norfolk, Virginia." I said, "You got to be kidding me."

[00:13:59]>> Cindy is arrested and eventually sentenced to 10 years [music] in prison for the seminary scam.

[00:14:05]In 2004, after Cindy Mackay steals over $200,000 from a Baltimore seminary, she is sent to prison for the third time in her life.

[00:14:17]But not for long.

[00:14:20]>> Yeah, she's able to cash in some some good time credits that the prison system awards, and after uh about 2 years, she's back on the streets.

[00:14:28]>> Cindy thought she was invincible.

[00:14:30]She basically thinks she's God. I mean, she really felt like she was the most powerful person around.

[00:14:38]>> And she really [music] puts this to the test when she meets Michael Romero.

[00:14:43]>> He's a 50-year-old muscle car enthusiast. He wears gold chains. How you doing?

[00:14:49]>> I'm good. How are you?

[00:14:51]>> I'm doing wonderful. Carries cash, big wads of cash. A nice guy for most accounts.

[00:14:56]>> Uh yeah, I would love to get some help.

[00:14:58]>> Apparently, he'd been enamored by her.

[00:15:00]Her personality was such that he was basically crazy about her and wanted to marry her.

[00:15:08]>> Before long, Cindy gets her claws into Michael [music] and his money.

[00:15:15]>> There's money disappearing from the nightstand while he's in the shower.

[00:15:20]There's credit cards being taken out in his name, [music] racking up tons of debt.

[00:15:25]>> Are you kidding me? I love you and you're stealing from me?

[00:15:30]>> I don't know what that is.

[00:15:31]>> Read >> And he confronted her about it with an ultimatum.

[00:15:35]You know, pay me back or I'm going to the police.

[00:15:38]>> Okay, yeah.

[00:15:38]>> There was a sense of desperation.

[00:15:42]>> Okay, I've gotten myself a little too deep this time. I don't know how to get out.

[00:15:47]And the fastest way to get out is to kill him.

[00:15:48]>> Unbelievable.

[00:15:51]>> She stabs Michael to death.

[00:15:54]>> She needs help disposing of the body.

[00:15:57]She turns to her 20-year-old son, Patrick.

[00:16:01]>> She sees everybody in her life as a tool, as a tool for her use.

[00:16:06]And even to bring her own children into it.

[00:16:08]>> Continually finding herself in prison, she was always away from her kids and wasn't present in their lives. And when it came down to it, when she found herself in really big trouble, got her son involved.

[00:16:22]>> Cindy and Patrick dump Michael's body in a ditch near their home.

[00:16:28]And then set it on fire.

[00:16:33]At 3:00 a.m. on February 22nd, 2006, Baltimore police and firefighters respond to the scene after witnesses spot the flames.

[00:16:44]>> And they extinguish the blaze and they see that the body of a man sort of curled up, wrapped in a blue blanket, and they can make out the gold chains that were his trademark.

[00:16:57]>> And the trail of evidence leads right back to Cindy.

[00:17:01]>> Police go into Cindy's [music] home.

[00:17:03]There's a blood stain on the floor. It's actually still wet.

[00:17:07]>> Police believe they finally have enough evidence to lock her away for a long time.

[00:17:14]>> They had video, surveillance video of her getting gasoline [music] from the local gas station, which was obviously used to douse the body and set [music] it on fire.

[00:17:22]>> Cindy Mackay is arrested and charged with first-degree murder.

[00:17:28]It seems Michael's murder is the one crime Cindy won't be getting away with.

[00:17:35]>> It finally came to a head.

[00:17:37]All these years of lying, stealing, hurting people, where ultimately she did one of the worst deeds that you can ever do. She killed somebody.

[00:17:51]>> Her son receives 5 years in prison for his role.

[00:17:56]In order to avoid a trial, Cindy Mackay submits an Alford plea, acknowledging there's enough evidence to convict her of Michael Romero's murder, but she never admits she's responsible for the crime.

[00:18:12]In July of 2008, Cindy is sentenced to 30 years in prison.

[00:18:18]It's a small price to pay for betraying so many for so long.

[00:18:25]>> She left a lot of victims behind. Her children, her former husbands, also the people she worked for, an elderly woman, and these husbands who ended up either dead or broke.

[00:18:40]It's very sad and it's so immoral, so criminal.

[00:18:44]>> She has absolutely no virtues, no positive virtues.

[00:18:50]She is void of virtues.

[00:18:52]The best place for her is jail.